The sudden announcement by Itochu Corporation, a major Japanese general trading company, on February 5th that it was terminating its contract with Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems sent shock waves across Japanese companies. ITOCHU Corporation is based on the International Court of Justice’s ruling that Israel may be committing genocide in the Gaza Strip and the Japanese government’s position that the ICJ’s ruling must be implemented “in good faith.” He specifically stated that he had decided to do so.
Itochu is important. The company is a well-known name in Japan, the third largest trading company, and one of the giants of the Japanese economy with revenues of over $104 billion in 2023. Prominent trading companies like Itochu Corporation are also politically important because they have historically been seen as the captains of Japan’s trade-based economy. Itochu’s decision sends a very clear message about the acceptability of doing business with Israel.
The decision puts Itochu in a different position from many Western countries and companies that have ignored the ICJ’s ruling or downplayed genocide charges as “unfounded.” The governments of the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Germany, to name just a few, have provided arms and political support to Israel to continue its wanton slaughter of innocent civilians, in clear violation of the ICJ’s interim decisions. continues to give. Word is cheap and arms continue to flow, although some Western governments have begun to withdraw aid.
In fact, these governments took criminal complicity to a new level by cutting off funding to UNRWA, the United Nations’ main agency serving Palestinian refugees. This is based on undeniably false Israeli accusations that a small number of the organization’s 13,000 employees may have been involved. Attack on Israel on October 7th. Literally hours after the ICJ ruled that Israel was likely to be committing genocide, one can’t help but wonder about the timing of the “dubious documents” Israel submitted to its Western accomplices. do not have.
The obedient Western media, which has always accepted Israel’s narrative, has rightly highlighted UNRWA’s imaginary involvement in terrorism, while effectively ignoring the ICJ ruling. Defunding UNRWA will almost inevitably result in starvation for more than 85 percent of displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. This is a textbook example of “deliberately subjecting an ethnic group to living conditions calculated to cause physical destruction,” which falls under national security law. An act of genocide under international law.
In general, Japan is not an outspoken defender of Palestinian rights – in fact, Japan has joined with its Western allies in suspending funding to UNRWA – or of human rights in general. Itochu was one of the first Japanese companies to begin human rights-based due diligence on its business operations (a process that clearly failed when it signed the contract with Elbit in the first place).
Nevertheless, recent years have shown that Japanese companies have become increasingly sensitive to public opinion regarding human rights and environmental issues. The failed 2020 Tokyo Olympics left a legacy of waste of public funds and corruption, but at least Japanese companies have been able to uphold the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (which states that businesses have a responsibility to respect international human rights). This gave me an opportunity to accept it. rights norms) more seriously. This is not to say that Japanese companies are necessarily superior to Western companies; in fact, this is not the case, but in this case, the protests in front of ITOCHU Corporation’s Tokyo headquarters and the protests against ITOCHU-owned convenience stores. A popular boycott is in play. The FamilyMart chain in a Muslim country like Malaysia has clearly pushed the company over the line.
According to ITOCHU, the agreement with Elbit was not for the provision of Japanese technology or weapons to Israel, but rather to procure supplies for the Japanese military. It also said that it had partnered with Elbit based on the company’s policy, but this claim was implausibly denied (by authorities). Assuming that is true, breaking the relationship becomes even more important. Itochu Corporation has effectively admitted that doing business with Israeli military companies constitutes complicity in Israel’s genocide. The logic is that relationships with other companies involved in Israeli violations of international law should also be terminated, whether they are Israeli or not. That is exactly what the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign rightly seeks to hold the apartheid state accountable for its crimes.
Itochu’s decision certainly portends Israel’s deepening isolation. The Western world has long been the main front for the BDS movement, and Israel is trying to suppress it. The development in Japan shows that BDS has truly entered the world, if there was any doubt at all.
Itochu’s decision could have repercussions far beyond Palestine, as Japan’s rearmament has long been integral to America’s grand strategy in East Asia. After World War II, Japan adopted a pacifist constitution that prohibited the use of force to resolve international disputes. But U.S. pressure on Japan to play a greater military role in Asia has increased in recent years as Americans become increasingly anxious about China’s challenge to U.S. hegemony.
Japan’s previously cautious approach changed dramatically in 2012 with the arrival of ultra-nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. With little or no regard for public opinion, Prime Minister Abe has pushed through highly controversial bills and policies aimed at rearmament, especially when fighting alongside allied (American) forces even outside Japan. gave the military much greater freedom. Arms exports and international joint development, long considered taboo, overnight became government priorities. Japan also actively participated in alliances explicitly aimed at keeping China in the international hierarchy, such as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue. Prime Minister Abe finally resigned in 2020, but the overall direction remained unchanged, and in 2022 the government pounced on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and pushed to nearly double the military budget.
From the beginning, strengthening ties with Israel was essential to further integrate Japan into the US military alliance. Palestine has traditionally been a sensitive topic for Japan’s foreign policy due to its high dependence on oil from Arab countries, but Prime Minister Abe abandoned all restraint and visited Israel in 2015, openly promoted trade and defense agreements with the United States. Vague information about joint weapons development with Israel soon surfaced, but was quickly denied. Pro-Israel puff articles appeared in conservative media, including one praising the masculinity of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a brave man defending his homeland.
The government has also launched a campaign to put strong pressure on companies to enter into agreements with Israel. Local chambers of commerce were strongly “encouraged” to visit Israel and build partnerships. I have personally received numerous calls from large Japanese companies who, while feeling pressured by their government, were considering the reputational risks of doing business with Israeli companies involved in the colonization of Palestine. I did. They beg me to tell them about “clean” Israeli companies they can do business with and who won’t be targeted by the BDS movement. Of course I had to tell them that wasn’t the case. Israel’s entire economy is built on the oppression of Palestinians and the theft of their land. Many of the companies ultimately succumbed to government pressure, but there is no doubt that they are now urgently reviewing their portfolios. Itochu’s move to sever ties with Elbit Systems could be the start of a new trend and a major setback to Japan’s rearmament and full integration into US anti-China military groups in East Asia. unknown.
Itochu’s decision should be applauded, and the BDS movement should continue its boycott of companies complicit in Israel’s human rights abuses. Still, there are limits to how much you can expect from private companies, which ultimately exist to maximize profits. Governments shape the competitive playing field for businesses through laws and regulations. Governments need to ensure that companies respect human rights and punish them when they fail. In particular, Western governments (and Japan) need to end their shameless support for Israeli apartheid and genocide, and encourage businesses within their jurisdictions to do the same. That is the only way to regain the last vestiges of diminished reliability.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of Al Jazeera.